Appeal Court Reinstates INEC’s 2027 Election Guidelines, Overturns High Court Judgment

Appeal Court Reinstates INEC’s 2027 Election Guidelines, Overturns High Court Judgment

The Court of Appeal in Abuja has upheld the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC)'s guidelines for the conduct of the 2027 general elections, overturning a Federal High Court judgment that had nullified the regulations.

In a unanimous judgment delivered on Thursday, the appellate court set aside the May 20 ruling of the Federal High Court in Abuja, which had invalidated the guidelines and restrained INEC from implementing them.

In the lead judgment, prepared by Justice Adebukola Banjoko and read by Justice Okon Abang, the court held that the Youth Party (YP), which challenged the guidelines, lacked the legal standing to institute the suit.

The appellate court ruled that the party failed to demonstrate how the guidelines adversely affected its interests, the conduct of its primary elections, or the submission of its candidates for the 2027 general elections.

Justice Banjoko held that the lower court ought not to have entertained the suit, as the claimant failed to establish a justiciable grievance.

The three-member panel further held that Justice Mohammed Garba Umar of the Federal High Court erred in law by nullifying the guidelines on the grounds that they conflicted with provisions of the Electoral Act. The appellate court described the decision as a miscarriage of justice.

INEC had appealed the judgment, arguing through its counsel, Alex Izinyon, SAN, that the trial court failed to determine its preliminary objection challenging the court's jurisdiction and wrongly entertained what it described as a hypothetical and academic dispute.

The commission also contended that it was denied a fair hearing before the lower court reached its decision.

At the centre of the dispute was the High Court's interpretation of Sections 29(1), 82 and 84 of the Electoral Act, 2026.

The trial court had held that while the Electoral Act requires political parties to submit the names of candidates who emerge from valid primaries not later than 120 days before the general election, it does not empower INEC to prescribe a timeframe within which parties must conduct their primaries beyond the statutory notice requirements.

However, the Court of Appeal disagreed, holding that the suit itself was incompetent because the Youth Party failed to establish sufficient legal interest to challenge the guidelines.

The judgment clears the way for INEC to implement its 2027 election guidelines as preparations for the next general elections gather momentum.